Bison volleyball battles 3 teams over weekend

Last Friday, Freshman outside hitter Jenni Fassbender led the NDSU volleyball team to a 3-1 set win over Air Force at the Hampton Inn and Suites Northern Colorado Classic in Greeley, Colorado.

Leading all players with hitting percentage and kills, Fassbender came away from the match hitting .500 with 15 kills. With four digs and five blocks of her own, the Bison would pull away from Air Force by outblocking them 16-5.

Other notable players in the game came away with their own share of kills, digs and blocks, as well. Senior outside hitter Brynn Joki contributed 14 kills and 15 digs, Carissa Whalen knocked in 11 kills with six blocks, Megan Labertson came out with eight kills and eight blocks, and senior defensive specialist/libero Andrea Henning came up with 22 digs. Freshman setter Emily Riese donated to the NDSU’s win with 27 assists while senior setter teammate Catherine Yager had 18 assists and seven blocks of her own. With these factors, the Bison would top Air Force by outhitting them .286 to .152.

In the second set, the Bison would put away 17 kills and two errors. Four kills in a row out of five would be awarded to Fassbender. Three kills from Joki in the third set helped the Bison move ahead during a six-point run after a tight tie of 15. The Bison would become the victors again in the fourth set with the help of a kill from Whalen and a double block by her and Yager, giving the team a 6-5 lead.

With the win against Air Force, it would mark the 1,100th win in NDSU volleyball history since 1965.

On Saturday, after 3-0 losses to Oklahoma and Northern Colorado, Joki was named to the Hampton Inn and Suites Northern Colorado Classic all-tournament team.

In a morning match against Oklahoma, Joki would come away with 13 kills and 12 digs while in the evening match against Northern Colorado, she tallied on 11 more kills.

In the second set against Oklahoma, the score would finally settle at a 37-35 loss for the Bison, which would mark the longest set for NDSU since 2005 when the Bison took in a loss at Drake. Emily Reise would finish with 23 assists in the Oklahoma match and a team-high 14 digs. Megan Lambertson, Jenni Fassbender, and Carissa Whalen each had eight kills in their time of play, but it wouldn’t be enough to push the Bison ahead of Oklahoma.

In the evening match against Northern Colorado, Lambertson contributed greatly by hitting .350 and 10 kills. She would also bring in three solos and eight total blocks. Finishing with a team-high of 13 digs was Andera Henning, and 18 assist were added by Catherine Yager.

NDSU volleyball will be back in action next Friday and Saturday, September 7th and 8th to take on Milwaukee, Wisconsin and Drake in the Wisconsin InnTower Invitational in Madison, Wisconsin.